http://mmajunkie.comNEWARK, N.J. – For the first time in his professional MMA career, Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson was tested.

The heavily marketed centerpiece of EliteXC’s foray into U.S. network television — a bare-knuckle brawler turned Internet sensation turned MMA fighter — proved that he has added greatly to his bag of MMA tricks. But veteran British fighter James Thompson also proved that Ferguson has a long road ahead before he can be considered a true heavyweight contender.

Ferguson’s third-round TKO of Thompson capped off Saturday’s “EliteXC: PRIMETIME” event, the first of four “Saturday Night Fights” broadcasts that will air on CBS over the next 12 months.

The event was the first live MMA event ever to air on major U.S. network television.

Despite an 11-fight undercard that resulted in a few controversial outcomes, the 8,033 spectators at Newark, N.J.’s Prudential Center were there largely for Ferguson, who moved his professional career record to 3-0 with the victory.

However, unlike his previous two fights, which lasted a combined 62 seconds, Ferguson’s clash with Thompson was far from an organized street fight. Thompson repeatedly put the 34-year-old on his back, stung him with punches and elbows, and in the waning moments of the second round, tested his resolve with an extended ground-and-pound assault.

After the event, Ferguson admitted he that he’s far from a polished and complete MMA fighter, but he’s also not about to overlook the progress he displayed during his fight with Thompson (16-9), a former PRIDE fighter who’s now lost seven of his past nine fights.

“I got his big ass off of me, didn’t I?” Ferguson asked.

The fight, of course, wasn’t without controversy. Many watching the event, including media members in a post-event press conference, questioned the referee’s decision to stop the bout while Thompson was still standing. Ferguson blasted Thompson with an early-third-round punch that popped open and bloodied the Brit’s ear. However, Thompson was already wobbly before the blow and showed no signs of recovering anytime soon.

Also causing a few raised eyebrows were referee Dan Miragliotta’s sometimes-hasty decisions to stand the fighters soon after the action hit the mat. Those stands-up, some of which came when Thompson was in clearly favorable positions, almost always benefited Ferguson. However, few referees are immune to the crowd’s desires, and what seemed to be a largely casual fan base repeatedly called for the fighters to be restarted on their feet. Additionally, despite the stellar position, Thompson wasn’t always able to do much with it.

However, what was perhaps most peculiar about the fight — and something surely to have the conspiracy theorists more confused than up in arms — was the scoring of the fight. All three judges (and the MMAjunkie.com ringside team) gave Thompson the first round with a 10-9 score. However, things got interesting in the second — a round in which Ferguson’s submission attempts eventually led to Thompson’s late ground and pound. Judge Romulo Bittencourt gave that round to Thompson, 10-9. However, Eric Colon had it 10-9 for Ferguson. Doug Crosby, meanwhile, had it 10-8 for Thompson. (For the record, MMAjunkie.com gave the very close round to Ferguson, 10-9.)

In any manner, Slice and EliteXC Live Events President Gary Shaw were in good spirits after the fight.

In the night’s co-main event, EliteXC middleweight champ Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith provided a mixed bag for viewers. At times, the bout was electric as both fighters threw punches and kicks with abandon. However, a slow start to a fight largely considered the night’s unofficial main event had many fans growing impatient.

Lawler took the first round on aggressive striking and sent Smith staggering back to his corner. However, round two was an incredibly close contest that bloodied both fighters and had each within grasp of victory. The final blow, though, wasn’t one of Lawler’s vicious uppercuts or Smith’s big rights. Instead, it was an inadvertent poke to Smith’s eye at the 3:26 mark of the third round. Lawler immediately apologized for the accidental poke, and officials rushed into the cage to check the damage. Despite his claims that he was OK to keep fighting, Smith was told he’d be unable to continue.

The crowd was irate with the decision, and the anger only intensified when New Jersey State Athletic Control Board representative Nick Lembo announced that the fight would be declared a no-contest. As he explained, championship fights require the completion of at least three rounds before the result can be determined by the scorecards.

Both Lawler (15-4) and Smith (13-4) were disappointed with the result.

“I wanted to go back out,” Smith said. “I probably would have been knocked out, but at least I would have been knocked out in the fight.”

After the bout, Shaw said that both fighters would receive their win bonuses for the fight, which essentially doubled their pay. MMAjunkie.com also asked the promoter about a possible rematch, and Shaw said that it only makes sense and hinted that it could headline the next CBS event, which is expected to take place in early fall.

In other action, despite a sad new level of criticism that was further fueled when Gina Carano failed to make weight for Saturday’s event, the Prudential Center crowd was firmly in her corner come fight time.

In the night’s lone female bout, opponent Kaitlin Young was booed lustily upon her entrance to the cage. Carano, meanwhile, was cheered mightily with chants of “Gina!” drowning out the pre-fight promos.

After a fairly even round, Carano controlled the second with a Muay-Thai-inspired assault of punches and knees from the clinch. A kick ultimately sent Young to the mat, and only the bell could save her from Carano’s subsequent rear-naked-choke attempt. However, so battered was Young’s face after the round that she was declared unfit to continue.

Carano (5-0), who was lambasted by her critics after she weighed in three-and-a-half pounds over the 141-pound limit for her fight, admitted that a hectic schedule had a major impact on her preparations for Young (4-2).

“I just came back from filming ‘American Gladiators,’ and I didn’t really put my heart into the training the way I usually like,” she said. “That kind of sucks, but [Young] is cool. She took the fight, and we moved on.”

Carano, arguably the sport’s most popular female fighter, delivered an honest and passionate speech in the night’s post-event press conference. The usually reserved and modest 26-year-old opened up about her love for the sport, her respect for its competitors, and a renewed commitment to her training schedule.

“People have no idea how much this sport means to me and how much I love it,” she said.

In the typical war of words that precede most Phil Baroni fights, Joey Villasenor proved to be a surprisingly worthy adversary. However, once the verbal jousting was replaced with the real stuff, it was Baroni who was no longer the game competitor.

After a head kick missed its mark, Villasenor opted to stand and trade with the notoriously hard-hitting Baroni. Villasenor, though, struck first, using a left-right-left combination to force Baroni to his knees. His prayers went unanswered, and the referee was forced to halt the bout seconds later to award Villasenor (26-6) a surprisingly quick victory over Baroni (10-10).

Since losing his title in June 2007, the former EliteXC middleweight champion has pieced together a bonafide winning streak. And yes, Villasenor has every intention of reclaiming the gold with another title shot.

“Of course,” he said. “That’s three (wins) in a row.”

The first-ever MMA fight to air live on major U.S. network television barely lasted a minute, but the jaw-jarring right hand that Brett Rogers delivered to Jon Murphy will surely leave a lasting impression.

The two heavyweights kicked off the CBS portion of the night’s card, but 45 seconds of tentative jousting slowly chipped away at the crowd’s energy level. However, soon after the fighters locked in a clinch against the fence, Rogers jolted the fans back to life — and Murphy into near-unconsciousness. First came the knee to the body, then came back-to-back right hands that first stunned then dropped Murphy to his knees.

The jolt of the second blow was enough to force a stoppage just 61 seconds into the bout.

With the victory, Rogers pushes his career record to 7-0 with six knockouts. Murphy, meanwhile, drops to 4-3 with his third loss in his past four fights.

“It is a real, real good feeling,” Rogers said. “This mean a lot to me. I’m just moving up the ladder.”

INTERNET CARD

He didn’t beat him down, but former NFL Pro Bowler Carlton Haselrig (2-0) did wear down opponent Carlos Moreno (5-3) in the preliminary card’s only heavyweight bout. Haselrig’s slow but successful takedowns kept Moreno grounded, and the subsequent submission attempts sapped his energy. With the New Jersey native unable to answer the bell for the second round, Haselrig earned the TKO victory.

With his former UFC world champion brother Matt Serra in his corner, Nick Serra (8-3) kept the fight close in the first round, but things fell apart in the second. Matt Makowski (3-0) used punches, kicks and knees to stagger his opponent, and when Serra failed on two occasions to jump guard, he was deducted a point for stalling. After the second infraction, Serra refused to get back up, and the referee halted the bout. Makowski was credited with the TKO victory at 3:57 of the second round.

Rising 140-pound prospect Wilson Reis (4-0) kept his perfect record intact — and posted his third consecutive submission victory — by forcing Justin Robbins (12-4-1) to tap from a rear-naked choke. The end came at 4:06 of the first round.

James “Binky” Jones (7-5) kept the pressure on his opponent throughout the first round. After muscling Calvin Kattar (2-1) to the mat, Jones patiently and methodically worked for and secured the rear-naked choke to force the tap-out at 4:49 of the first round.

DARK CARD

After surviving Andre Soares‘ (5-2) early submission attempts in the opening round, Zach Makovsky (4-1) stormed through the next two while battering his opponent with a dominant stand-up game. The judges gave him the unanimous-decision victory with scores of 29-28, 29-26, 29-26.

Joe Sampieri (1-2) secured the mount position and rained down punches to force a stoppage with just seconds remaining in the opening round. The TKO victory over Mike Groves (0-2) came at the 4:58 mark of round one.

TORONTO – MMAjunkie is on scene and reporting live from today’s early and official UFC 206 fighter weigh-ins, which kick off at 9 a.m. ET (6 a.m. PT). Join us for a live video stream and official results.

ALBANY, N.Y. – MMAjunkie is on scene and reporting live from today’s UFC Fight Night 102 event at Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y., which kicks off at 5:45 p.m. ET (2:45 p.m. PT). You can discuss the event here.